Independence of judiciary

‘Rule of Law, means everything is done according to law, is our constitution followed, no. why even the 13th amendment of the constitution is not followed, what about 17th amendment when it was in force. How many times, the executive betrayed the constitution by not appointing members to constitutional council?’  “We in Sri Lanka in […]

Basil Fernando “I am expected to take my oaths next year, but now I have to rethink whether an attorney could work according to his or her conscience and seek justice for the aggrieved party giving the extreme political pressures the judicial process is subjected to in this country. There has to be a serious rethink […]

The Court case in relation to the disappearance of Journalist Prageeth Ekneliyagoda was taken up for hearing at the Appeals Court in Colombo on April 24. The hearing opened as the Sandhya’s attorney explained the proceedings of the case held at the Magistrate Court in Homagama on March 26.  Sandhya’s attorney pointed out that he […]

”When Mr. Bandaranaike was assassinated the whole country was mourning the tragic loss of its leader and what shocked the consciousness of the nation was that a Buddhist priest was accused of shooting and another Chief Priest of conspiring to kill the revered leader. But, the accused monk retained the services of Lawyers who without […]

”At the time I joined the judiciary, prominence was given to career judges and there were chief justices who had started as magistrates and those days it took only about nine years for a career judge to be promoted as a High Court Judge.  In my case it took me 18 years and when I […]

High Court Judge W.T.M.P.B. Warawewa has revealed that a request made by the Attorney-General’s Department to further extend his term of office by a year to enable him to hear several pending cases has been refused by the Chief Justice.  “The Attorney General’s Department requested that I be reappointed to hear and conclude several important […]

The letter informing me of the date of the interview had been delivered to my Colombo office address. However on the very last day before the date on which the interviews were to be held I suddenly decided to come to Colombo to meet some friends. As I opened the letter, I found that the […]

It is revealed that a situation has arisen where police investigations into 86 extreme crimes are to be shelved. According to CID sources the crimes to be shelved involve extortion, murder and drug peddling.It is revealed that among them are several crimes that sparked outrage in the country. It is also revealed that the crimes […]

This is the text of letter sent by International Commission of Jurists in association with the Law and Society Trust in Colombo to Justice minister Rauff HakeemMinistry of JusticeColombo 12, April 6, 2012 Hon. Minister of Justice Rauff Hakeem, The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) in collaboration with the Law & Society Trust invite your […]

In the magisterial inquiry into the disappearance of journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda, Homagama Magistrate T.G.S.A. Perera on Monday reserved order for May 17, whether or not to call former Attorney General (AG) Mohan Peiris as witness, The Magistrate reserved the order after the prosecution challenged the validity of the transcript copy of the statement made by […]

The Supreme Court has put off until May 19 a fundamental rights petition against the blockade of certain websites.The Free Media Movement has filed the petition.At a hearing yesterday (Mar. 29), representatives of citizens groups propagating the right to information were present at the court. A panel of lawyers led by J.C. Weliamuna is appearing […]

Former high court judge W.T.M.P.B. Warawewa accuses certain judges of having failed to maintain the dignity of their profession and having no self-strength.  He was speaking in Colombo at a felicitation organized in his honour by the young lawyers association.The former judge alleged certain judges did not know their independence, unaware of justice and would […]

The fundamental rights petition filed before the Supreme Court by 13 employees of Katunayake Free Trade Zone claiming their fundamental rights were violated when police attacked the peaceful agitation carried out by the employees against a fraudulent pension scheme the government attempted to force on private sector employees will be heard.The Supreme Court took this […]

It is revealed that the human rights report regarding Roshen Chanaka who was killed when police opened fire at a peaceful agitation carried out by employees of the Katunayake Free Trade Zone has been cached. The employees carried out the agitation opposing an attempt by the government to arbitrarily introduce a pension scheme for private […]

Tassie Seneviratne In an earlier article I outlined how high-profile interference frustrates police professionalism. In this context the Vijaya Kumaratunga assassination case is another that deserves elaboration. Vijaya Kumaratunga was a film idol who started politics in the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP). He married Chandrika Bandaranaike in 1978 and joined the Sri Lanka Freedom […]

 He worked for Army IntelligenceThe Supreme Court yesterday granted leave to proceed with the fundamental rights violation application filed by Kandegedara Priyawansa, a lorry driver from Nuwara Eliya, who had worked in the Intelligence Unit of the Sri Lanka Army.The petitioner had said that the Terrorist Investigation Unit had arrested him on February 27, 2010, […]

Application should have been made to Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake The retired judges who had called upon President Mahinda Rajapaksa to appoint a special committee to probe Sarath N. Silva’s conduct as Chief Justice should have made an application to incumbent Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake instead of the executive, retired Supreme Court Judge […]

 President Mahinda Rajapaksa has decided to terminate the services of Colombo High Court judge W.T.M.P.B. Warawewa.  He had been on one-year extension until yesterday (Jan. 31) following a request by the attorney general last year.  That was to enable him to be a member in the panels that heard the ‘white flag’ case against former […]

The Counsel for Baratha Lakshma Premachandra, Upali Kumarapperuma told court today that the CID is “fabricating evidence” when the case was taken up today. The Counsel further went on to point out that initially the CID had only said that they found two shots were released from R. Gamini the bodyguard of Premachandra but now […]

 On the third death anniversary of a slain newspaper editor his widow has called on the international community to exert pressure on Sri Lanka government to hold an independent investigation into his murder.Sonali Wickrematunge Samarasinghe, the widow of Sunday Leader editor Lasantha Wickrematunge, says the investigation needed “to bring back the rule of law rather […]

The Justice Ministry will set up a Sentencing Advisory Council and introduce Sentencing Guidelines for Sri Lanka’s judicial system and thus prevent anomalies in the sentencing procedure, a senior ministry official said yesterday.  Justice Ministry Secretary Suhada Gamalth said studies conducted by the ministry had revealed there were instances where judges at different courts had […]

(Srilankamirror) – The Sri Lanka branch of Transparency International has recognized J.C. Weliamuna for his contributions to the field of human rights.  The citation read at the NIA presentation for him recognized the unyielding integrity, personal commitment and courage of the former executive director of TISL and director of Transparency International. Born on 29th of August, […]

Namini WijedasaThe government last week withdrew an amendment to the Town and Country Planning Ordinance that if passed would have given the Minister of Buddha Sasana and Religious Affairs vast powers over any private property in the country. The Town and Country Planning (Amendment), a copy of which was obtained by LAKBIMAnEWS, consists of just […]

Chandani Kirinde The Sentencing Policy Bill which will give the judiciary guidelines on penalties is one of a string of new laws the government will introduce next year. According to Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem, the new law will ensure uniformity in the sentences passed on those found guilty. The new law has been formulated with […]

ANDUN A. JAYASEKERAThe Justice Ministry is in a quandary as to how to reclaim millions of rupees worth of movable and immovable properties from several retired High Court Judges who continue to use these properties illegally even after several years of retirement, a senior ministry official said yesterday. Justice Ministry Secretary Suhada Gamlath said the […]

Quintus PereraOrdinary bills presented in parliament could be worse than urgent bills referred to the Supreme Court because often items that are unconstitutional are smuggled in as amendments, a top lawyer said this week. Speaking during a timely panel discussion on “How urgent are urgent bills?” organized by the Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) and […]

Chandani Kirinde The Supreme Court has decided not to make a determination on a bill intended to amend the Town and Country Planning Ordinance on the grounds that it has been placed on the Order Paper of Parliament without complying with the constitutional requirement that it be first referred to the Provincial Councils (PCs) for […]

It is our right to protest that no government or political party can investigate past decisions and actions of the former Chief Justice or else the next victim will be the incumbent chief justice and the government will take steps to appoint a new person. This has become a threat for judges to act independently. […]

Shamindra Ferdinando The UPFA alleges the US embassy is increasingly interfering in domestic political issues, thereby undermine the government.  The SLFP-led coalition believes that the US is trying to cause a rift in the government over the imprisonment of defeated presidential candidate, former Army Chief, Gen. Sarath Fonseka.The party was responding to US Ambassador Patricia Butenis […]

 Chandani Kirinde Deepali Wijesundara, President of the Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar that convicted former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka to three years imprisonment in the “white flag” case spoke to the Sunday Times on the threats she faced during the trial , after the judgment and other matters. Excerpts: You have spoken of threats to your […]